いくら軍艦寿司, Ikura gunkanzushi
Antho and I have many things in common, from our blue-tinged hair to an enthusiasm for Doctor Who and backpacking. Happily, sushi is one thing that we both greatly adore so our choice on date nights is usually quite an easy decision. We even share a profound appreciation for the glory of sea urchin! As such it makes an ideal choice for those rare nights we two get to go out and celebrate our coupleness.
A top choice for us to satiate our need for sushi in Vegas is Sushi Twister.
One of the bigger selling points for me is that the restaurant is owned and operated by Japanese staff, so I get to bust out my rusty Japanese skills and impress my guy. Winning!
Their specials board changes often, but we're always happy when they have super white tuna!
シマアジと白まぐろ握り寿司
shima aji in the front, super white tuna behind
Shima aji's appearance made me exceptionally happy as shima aji is traditionally considered a summer season fish in Japan and I don't think I've ever encountered it in a restaurant stateside. The oily fish has a rich, supple flesh without the fishiness of other mackerel. I'm a big fan of aozakana (blue fish), and the seasonal specialties of Japanese cuisine are one of the things I miss most.
At Sushi Twister typical All You Can Eat rules apply. Lunch garners you a 1 hour time limit, dinner an hour and a half, only order what you can eat as you'll be charged for left overs, etc.
We've yet to have leftovers. ;)
ゴマわかめ, Goma wakame
Seaweed salad is a must! I love how the seaweed maintains it's uniquely crunchy texture in the dressing, and it gives a nice boost of healthy fiber to an otherwise white-rice heavy meal.
白まぐろ握り寿司, Shiromaguro nigirizushi
Mm, super white tuna! The sauce looks suspiciously like momoji oroshi, which is A-OK by me. Antho isn't particularly fond of the sauce as he feels it's too strong for the subtle fish to really shine.
They've decorated for the fall!
I also find the description of the sake amusing.
The chefs hard at work on a busy afternoon.
Maneki nyanko! Always a friendly face in any Japanese restaurant.
穴子天ぷら
Conger eel tempura.
The crispy tempura coating compliments the tender meat inside.
The sauce is a rich reduction of unagi tare.
エビ天！
Ebi-ten!
Nothing especially unusually or unique about these, just your standard tasty shrimp tempura.
ダイナマイトムール貝
Baked Mussels
Always a favorite of our's. This is one of the few dishes that my several impaired sense of smell has actually been able to pick up on! Pretty cool.
ダイナマイトほたて
Baked Scallops
We'd never actually ordered this dish until this visit. It was alright, Antho didn't care for it. There were sautéed onions and mushrooms mixed in with the itty bitty scallops, which he felt detracted from them.
たこ、いかとほき握り寿司
From front to back: Octopus, squid and surf clam nigiri.
たこ握り寿司
The octopus nigirizushi.
I always try to order these three, as they're light and clean with a subtle flavor and chewy bite.
Sometimes the octopus is raw rather than pre-cooked, which is my personal preference. Still lovely!
いか握り寿司
Ika nigirizushi.
Squid is one of my favorite methods to test the legitimacy of a sushi restaurant. I always prefer places that add notches to the squid as it helps to soften the otherwise potentially too-chewy texture of the cephalopod. There are few things as unpleasant as getting a big thick rectangular slab of rubbery squid that takes forever to masticate. Sushi Twister does it right, though there was an unexpectedly large dab of wasabi on the piece Antho grabbed causing him a bit of a surprise.
ほき握り寿司
Hoki, or surf-clam, nigirizushi. This is one of Antho's favorite mollusks and it also happens to be quite a photogenic one with it's vibrant pink tip.
The Halloween Roll! Once I saw it on the specials board I knew we had to try it.
Pumpkin tempura, Shrimp tempura and cucumber inside topped with shrimp and quadruple sauce!
甘エビ握り寿司
Amaebi nigirizushi, one of my favorites! The tender nearly-translucent flesh of the shrimp has the slightest bit of briny and a lot of sweet flavor to it's succulent flesh. They removed the tails, which was a nice gesture. I always feel awkward when served sushi with the tails on, and I generally just eat it. XD Extra calcium!
At Sushi Twister they give you the option to order the sweet shrimp's heads deep-fried. I always say yes! All the little spines become crispy while the interior of the shrimp's head becomes a delectable burst of shrimpy intensity. Not for the faint of hearted, I suppose, but Antho and I both enjoy them!
サケ握り寿司
Salmon nigirizushi. A little more tame than deep-fried crustacean craniums, eh?
Salmon is one of my favorite fish, period, but especially served as sushi. Mm!
The roe is always a lovely addition. Don't they look like little Dragon Balls?
うに軍艦寿司
Uni gunkanzushi.
Ahh, sea urchin, a much maligned treat of the sea is where we capped off our meal. We were both growing quite full and had done more than our fair share of damage to the ocean's ecology, so after this round of urchin gonads we wrapped it up and paid our bill.
Do you enjoy sushi?
What's your favorite? ^_^
No comments:
Post a Comment